Pipe benders have long been used, for example, by electricians to bend piping (i.e., conduit) through which electrical wires pass. Such pipe benders, as is known, include a curved bending head or cradle that receives the pipe to be bent, and a handle which can be grasped by the user. To bend the pipe, the user simply places the pipe in the head, and pivots the head using the handle to bend the pipe. The pipe is bent around the curvature of the cradle until the desired angle of bend is reached.
When the user bends a pipe, he/she tries to achieve a particular angle, typically 45° or 90°. However, other size angles are often required. If a pipe is not bent to the desired angle (i.e., if the angle is overshot or undershot), then the pipe will not lay were desired, and the pipe may not lay flush against a surface, for example. To bend the pipe to the desired angle, users must currently bend the pipe to an approximate angle relying solely on eye sight, experience, and other approximation tools. Therefore, new approaches are needed for ensuring the desired bend angle when using pipe benders to bend piping.